Sweet Dreams
by pisces822
Summary: Dreams are impossible for Gaara. He was an insomniac ever since he was two. So how come a petty accident triggered a particular girl with pink hair and green eyes into his night, something altogether surreal? AU, multichap
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: ** I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE SakuxGaara or sakuxItachi. Especially SakuxIachi. SO hot. (I'm a die hard addict for ANGST)

Well, anyways,

General disclaimer applied.

Enjoy.

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**Sweet Dreams**

**Chapter 1**

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He never did strike a chord.

He was just an ordinary guy- redhead, tall around 6 foot, sturdy (as in, he wasn't slim, but he wasn't a macho man either), did not speak much in class –naturally, he was probably interested in other aspects, per say _girls_-, sported a Jansport backpack, and owned a pair of green eyes. (Well, that she must admit gave him a few points. He had eyes like her!)

But that was before she _knew_ him.

When she did know him—

It was indeed a different story.

If she was asked to describe herself in one word, Sakura Haruno would portray herself as "awkward".

It was true- she was the unlucky heir to pink hair with the combination of bright, emerald eyes. It wasn't that she minded the color pink or green or anything, but, couldn't she just have at least one normal trait? She wouldn't mind her mom's auburn hair with the emerald eyes. Or maybe even just her dad's brown eyes with pink hair. That would be okay. But pink hair and green eyes?

It was just abnormally freaky.

In the midst of a crowd, a helicopter could just fly over and instantly spot a bright crown of _pink_. If she ever decided to run away from home, it wouldn't go very far because all her mom had to do was tack on a picture of her hideous combination and whoever laid eyes on her wouldn't forget her.

Yes, she stuck out like a sore thumb, and she hated it.

Most people would love that situation. Most people like the acknowledgement, the daily praises of 'love the dyed hair!' (Lots of times, people don't even _believe_ her when she says it's natural) or 'cool, green eyes! I've never seen green eyes before!' But she didn't want that. She wanted to blend into the crowd, to be whoever she aspired to be, to create her own image.

And in private Konoha High, school of grades 9 to 12 with only four hundred students in total, everyone knew her.

She wasn't just a girl.

She was The Girl "with pink hair and green eyes".

It infuriated her to no end.

Not to mention, she was one of the shyer girls.

Whenever a hot guy talked to her, words unintentionally just slide out of her mouth before she can stop and the next thing she does she starts babbling and her face turns bright red and then she's turning away and running towards the destination 'Girl's Bathroom' where she could wash some of her shame away.

Or whenever the teacher called on her, her voice is quiet so everyone who's talking hush up and then it's silence and the silence just kills her and pressure is increasing and her heart is pounding and her hand is sweating and then she answers and the answer is wrong and the teacher picks on someone else who gives the answer she knew all along.

Worst of all, she was clumsy.

Go up stairs, and if it has more than fifty steps, she is bound to trip at least once.

While walking across floors, she trips over backpack straps that she was certain people booty trap just for her.

But she mustn't be arrogant; most of the time, she manages to trip over _nothing_.

She wouldn't be surprised if she managed to get herself into the ER because of her clumsiness.

And though fortunately that never did happen, something horribly embarrassing did happen, and really, she must thank her awkwardness for the event that unfolded, the domino that triggered what came, so beautifully, so elusive, so subtle…

And yet so destructive.

* * *

_Yes! My outline is complete and I am ready to go! _Inner Sakura victory danced as Sakura grinned slightly, making her way through the room to reach the printer.

Completely oblivious, she missed the wire in front of her path and her right foot snagged onto it, making her lurch forward as her cheeks instantly warmed. She stumbled then caught herself.

A 'ping' randomly went off from one of the computers around her.

She shot a discreet look around the room, letting out a silent sigh of relief as the rest of the class seemed emerged in their own research project. Good.

She turned back slightly to view what her enemy was-

Her mouth fell open.

Somebody's white Mac computer battery charger was plugged into an electrical socket on the ground, and by tripping, the wire had uprooted from the source, and the battery now laid in two pieces on the ground: one large piece and one smaller piece.

Sakura's head frantically swiveled to the closest person who maybe possibly owned this and found her eyes gazing at the back of a guy's head, his hair a dark shade of red.

Not exactly a redhead because it was a dark, rusty type of red mixed with brown.

_Gaara. _

She had tripped over Gaara's battery charger and _broke_ it. She did not know much about him, just that he was not one of the louder ones in class and only commented when necessary. He was the kind who liked to lurk out in the back of the classroom silently, giving her the vibe that either one) he was a druggie or two) he really did not give a shit about school.

_Crap._

She took a hesitant step forward, gazing at the mess but finding herself unable to bend down and pick up the pieces. If she did, her fear would be confirmed and…

She took a step backwards this time, half contemplating whether or not she could run away without anyone noticing. Subconsciously, she suddenly recalled last year when she was a mere little freshman and had stumbled upon a senior's battery charger and she _had_ run away due to the intimidation…

The image sizzled in her brain, and she gave a sigh.

She couldn't.

It will burn inside her for the rest of the school year when he returns to school the next day with a brand new battery charger. They probably cost like $50 or something, maybe even $100, given an ordinary Macbook costs around $1000.

She took another look around. Nobody seemed to notice her…

She could, but…

Dimly, she remembered the 'ping' from earlier. When she tripped over the battery, the computer must have signaled its user the battery was unplugged.

She couldn't.

She bit her lip, trembling for a while and before she could change her mind and run away like a coward, she quickly crossed the two feet to stand behind him who was typing away on his Macbook and listening to music, given that he had ear plugs in his ears.

She lowered her face near his. "Gaara…" she started, dragging his name longer than needed as she sucked in her breath.

He did not seem to hear her, but then he pressed 'enter' on his keyboard, and his head inclined slightly.

"I think…"

His head was turning _more _(oh god!) ".. I-broke-your-battery," she rushed out, biting the inside of his mouth as she braced to meet his expression. Anger? Disgust? Contempt?

Startling green eyes met hers squarely.

Her breath hitched-

She knew he had green eyes, but up close-

"What?" he asked, his eyes focused dead straight on her.

"Um," her heart fluttered, "I…I think…I think I broke your battery."

Her heart pounded faster and faster, and she had to hold her breath to peek at his face. Her trepidation turned to confusion as a look of boredom flickered through his eyes and crossed his face. "It's fine," he dismissed, turning back to his computer and continuing to type where he had left off.

She watched in horror. "No... ummmm, Gaara, I broke your battery," she repeated, tone slightly accusing as her eyes seared at his screen where additional words were appearing onto the document.

She watched numbly as he slowly yanked out his ear plugs slowly-did he not hear me?- and with a dazed look, she scrambled over to his battery with a scowl. She might as well just show him if he really didn't believe her. She picked up the smaller piece tentatively, looking up to see a shadow cross her face and see him bend down to pick up the larger piece.

He straightened up, and now standing so close to him, she suddenly realized how tall he was. He must be at least a foot taller than her! She gulped. He held out his hand and for a brief second, the thought _I'm-gonna-touch-his-hand!_- shrieked out at her. Her cheeks were probably bright red right now, and she wondered if he could see it.

She placed it in his hand, slightly skimming over his palm.

It was a cool touch.

He didn't flinch like her and accepted it quietly.

_See, __look__, I broke it!_ She harrumphed inwardly, looking up fearfully yet expectantly at his face for any hint of accusation.

There were none. His eyes stared right into her, almost penetratingly. He spoke patiently, his voice void of emotion, "You didn't break it. You place this piece… over here," he demonstrated as he connected the smaller piece into the battery in front of her, his eyes lifting up to hers blankly.

Sakura's eyes widened as she stared back dumbfounded. _Wait a…sec… whadjasay? _Her mind replayed his words again, then again slowly, as if rewinding a tape in slow mo. The motion of hand inserting small piece into large piece repeated concurrently. The only word that eventually left her mouth was a short dumb "Oh" as she felt the familiar urge to just crawl under a rock (aka run to the bathroom) but that wasn't possible at the moment so after a pause, she left hurriedly to the printer to grab her printed outline.

She started to walk back jaggedly, hoping he was back in his seat, but alas, he was bent over, plugging in his battery.

_God. She must've sounded like a retard._

Inner Sakura pounded her with shame.

Feeling obligated to at least say something, she let out a weak "sorry" as she passed him, her voice cracking slightly in the middle of the word.

He looked up at her and gave her a brief yet emotionless smile. "It's fine. I expected it anyways."

For a moment, Sakura's small flare flamed up inside her as she naturally assumed he meant her clumsiness.

"Well, I…" she started defiantly, only to notice his eyes were no longer looking at her but looking at a point behind her, a pasted –idon'tcare-expression sealed tightly over his face.

She stopped.

Besides, how could he have known she was clumsy? He didn't even _know_ her.

Her cheeks turned warm for the third time in the day, and she walked back to her backpack, groaning as she felt the full humiliation of what just took place pour all over her.

Sure, she may have just first spoken with a really _hot _guy she probably never would've spoken to if the incident never occurred, but then again, it was because of her stupidity and clumsiness.

She let out a frustrated groan.

Only she could ever pull this off.

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**A/N:** Hmm. Well, I'm planning this to be a short multi chap fanfic. I'm not interested in a super long fanfic b/c that takes way too much time and I usually end up not writing it. But once again, this is totally impulsive meaning I have no idea where I'm going so IDK. Uh, this is Sakura and Gaara in the most realistic way I could imagine in a modern society, so NO, I didn't plan for them to be OOC if they seem like it; would like to know what u think though.

Review!


	2. Chapter 2

Thank you readers, reviewers **pillowwolfpup **and **SasoLOVE111**, and those who have put my story on their alerts/favorites.

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**Sweet Dreams **

**Chapter 2**

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Sakura rested her forehead gently against the window pane as the bus tipped forward, creaking as the wheels started to turn and exit the pathway.

Another school day.

She sighed, closing her eyes lightly as she clutched her backpack next to her. Loud laughter and talk surrounded her densely as kids chattered with their friends. No, it wasn't that she minded the noise. She was used to it anyways, having ridden the bus ever since first grade, when her dad—

Well, since she was seven.

It wasn't the space either. Normally, she would be claustrophobic. God knows how much she hated small space- including bathrooms, elevators, closets, any place with no window and a door that sealed shut.

She suppressed a shudder.

No, it wasn't the space.

The brakes screeched as the bus paused. Stop sign.

Sakura's forehead slid against the window and she removed it, tucking her knees and resting her cheek there instead.

It wasn't the aloneness either.

None of her friends took the bus so every day she sat in the same old seat in the back, around the three last rows, her and her backpack. Occasionally an I-pod, but most of time, it was just the two of them. Her sweet magenta tattered backpack and herself.

No, she didn't mind she was alone. It was early in the morning anyways, and she was definitely not a morning person. She liked the quiet.

The time to think.

So it wasn't that either.

What was it?

Sakura's arm wrapped around her knees tightly.

There was something she felt… something she's been feeling for a while now every time she sat on the bus and sat there with her backpack alone with loudness and everything surrounding her on the way to Konoha High.

Something she dreaded.

* * *

The saying 'people learn through their mistakes' was something Sakura could never quite agree on.

History was the compilation of past events, mistakes and triumphs, a recorded story of humanity. At the beginning of the year, usually a teacher or a student brings up the question, why do we learn history?

What is the point?

The answer more or less is always: Learning the past gives us insight to improve the future.

Sure, after a mistake, one can understand the situation, the consequences…

But can one truly learn?

Wars will perpetually start and end. Civilizations will always have an end. Humans will always feel. Humans will always lose control over emotion. Humans will always be humans, even in the end. It is a constant cycle, and though one can teach oneself to understand the mistakes, it is unchangeable. Its constant cycle is the one thing constant.

When Kakashi-sensei finished his lecture on WWII, he turned to face the class and lifted a droopy eyelid, "Even after the Great War and its heavy consequences and the suffering it bought, WWII emerged. Do think it was predictable? Or perhaps inevitable? Why do you think there was a second total war, when the whole world experienced the devastating outcomes of the Great War?"

And then Kakashi's one good eye (his left eye was punctured in the Vietnam War and was later replaced with an artificial eye that needed to be covered in the daytime) swung to the back of the room.

"Gaara."

Sakura stopped doodling. He never volunteered an answer before.

Talking ceased as silence swept into the room.

His cool, detached voice floated to the front of the room.

"People are too stupid to learn from their mistakes. Too obstinate, too ignorant, too emotionally hindered. Humans will never be able to learn from their mistakes."

And while people gasped in shock and murmured their disapproval, all Kakashi did was nod, his dark eye solemn. "Any other opinions, thoughts?"

Sakura could not help but turn around to catch the twin jade eyes. His red locks sat on top his head, his hands folded under his chin. There were no emotions on his face. Just utter peace.

No one else understood.

But she did.

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The loud chatter from their table fell into hushed whispers as the cafeteria doors opened and the hottest senior walked in.

Coal eyes, dark raven hair, pale skin.

His biceps and muscles were visible through his dark T and the god walked down the hallway through easy strides, a smirk perpetually planted onto his face.

As if he was laughing at all of them on a sick little joke only he knew.

His eyes stared straight through all his fan girls.

Sakura heard Ino suck in her breath as he passed their table, a misty, dark aroma settling around their shoulders.

Sakura took a bite out of her turkey sandwich, watching as her friends all let loose their shoulders and blush colored each and every one of their cheeks.

She took another bite.

Okay, at first, she was crazy for him. All day he was the only thing she thought of. Whenever she was in class and looked down at her notebook, she saw doodles of faint hearts all over the page. Itachi xoxoxo was scrawled over binders, almost every girl's status. He was the heartthrob of Konoha High. The one girls easily throw away their dreams for.

He was her top priority,

Once.

And when she came to the point where she realized she was in competition with the other two hundred five other girls of the school, her priority settled onto Sasuke, his little brother. Not the real thing, but a decent copy.

Sakura crumpled her empty sandwich bag. She was still hungry. She got up and left the bench, heading towards the vending machine.

He was just an obsession,

One that grew old.

It wasn't that she gave up.

It just didn't matter anymore.

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Yesterday night she had a dream.

She was in a forest, a dark green forest with towering trees and dry old wooden trunks everywhere she turned. The dark musty scent of nature was pungent in the air. It was night, a thin pale crescent hanging limply in the sky.

She was running.

Wolves howled, and creatures stirred.

In the whole dream, all she did was run.

When she awoke, her heart was thumping, fast and heavy under her chest.

Thump-thump-thump.

* * *

There was something she needed.

But she didn't understand.

Something was different about her.

In a good way or a bad way she did not know.

All she knew was how she felt.

She felt trapped.

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**A/N: **ah, good ol' angst. anyways, i know this chapter seems like fluff and there isn't much going on. it's more just to set the story. Next chapter will definitely have some interaction between Gaara and Sakura.

Review!


	3. Chapter 3

Thank you all readers and reviewers **SasoLOVE111**and **pillowwolfpup **for their lovely reviews! Plot is introduced this chapter, so read on!

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**Sweet Dreams **

**Chapter 3**

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She almost tripped on it again.

She was rushing towards the printer as the bell rang, signaling the end of the period. If he hadn't gotten up at the last minute, pushing his chair back and eliciting a dull screech, she wouldn't have looked up and noticed the white wire.

When she did, utter despair rose in her and she turned around warily.

She met his eyes for a brief second before breaking away pathetically. "Sorry," she muttered in a slur as she daintily lifted her right foot and set it over the other side of the wire.

She took another fleeting glance at him.

His sharp green eyes bored right back at her with such intensity that she took a step back.

"Sorry," she repeated again, softer now as her voice trembled.

The penetration of his eyes made her flinch inwardly, and it seemed to her as if he could see right through her, straight down to the core.

Her weaknesses, all laid out in front of her.

She gulped.

No doubt he must've heard it.

She turned her heated face to the ground as he closed his Macbook shut and unplugged the battery cord.

He finally spoke, his voice flatly empty. "Don't toss sorrys so carelessly. They don't mean anything."

Her head swerved to meet his eyes for a last time as he strode away from her.

Her head tipped forward to the ground, finding no words to counter his bleak statement. None came.

There was such a note of finality in his voice that made it so there weren't any words to fill in the blanks.

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It was weird how someone you never saw before all of a sudden seemed to be _everywhere_.

Before the whole incident, he was just an ordinary stranger that faded into the back. Just a foggy face in the blur of the background.

Yes, Konoha High was tiny, so there weren't massive clouds of people to use as an excuse. But Sakura never saw him anywhere, during break or even in the cafeteria, a room that was applicable to all students of each grade.

He was in her history class, but he always blended in the back rows of the room, and as a straight-A student, she always sat in the front row.

But now, walking down hallways and across the lawn to get from building and building, a flash of red hair always caught her eye and her eyes would catch the boy's pale face- his inscrutable almond eyes, his grim frown sealed frozen on his face.

And sometimes she found herself looking for him, her eyes looking straight through packs of students to try to spot a particular redhead.

It was pathetic, strange, stalkyish -whatever you preferred to call it- but most of all, it was confusing.

Why was she so interested?

He was _no one_.

He was nothing.

No one even knew who he was.

She'll comment to her friends about how there were so many blondes and brunettes and black haired and how it was strange there were no redheads in the school, and expecting a reply 'oh, there is one and his name is Gaara', she was dismayed to find her friends nodding their heads in agreement albeit confused on the randomly tossed comment.

They've only encountered twice, but she already had his dispassionate voice recorded in her voice.

He was…

What was the word?

Interesting?

Unemotional?

"_People are too stupid to learn from their mistakes. Too obstinate, too ignorant, too emotionally hindered. Humans will never be able to learn from their mistakes."_

Different?

Maybe it's stupid to already be so obsessed with this one guy she's only just met but-

For one thing,

He was real.

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In seventh grade, Sakura's science teacher had advised everyone to observe, to pay attention to the little details of every situation. He said, little details hold more importance than the general sketch, because everyone understands the basic. The little details, though, are only picked up by the ones who pay attention and care. And these little details are the ones that give you a wider scope of understanding. It gives you an advantage.

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To this day, she still firmly believed in the statement.

In ninth grade, she used it to gain advantage over other Itachi fan-crazy girls. Well, it actually never took effect, because she fell out of her puppy obsession-

She mustn't say his fan girls don't know anything about him. She was certain they all know his birthday, his favorite color, his personal food tastes, his license plate, his address (probably even been to his house before), his class schedule, his electives, his body size… The list just went on and on.

But all those don't matter to the one detail she knew.

And that was he hated Sasuke.

It wasn't just limited to brotherly hate.

It was extended to the point where if given the scenario, Itachi would kill him.

It wasn't just speculation.

It was pure fact.

And okay, she wasn't honest before.

She switched her attention to Sasuke because she figured if the two of them started a relationship, Itachi would turn his attention on her to try to leverage an advantage over his brother.

That never happened because after a year of observation, she must say Itachi has some major issues.

Hot bods just aren't everything.

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This was what she knew so far:

1) He has green eyes and red hair

2) He owns a Macbook

3) He has history third period

4) He likes to sit at the back of the class

5) He believes human's crude emotions hinders their ability to progress

6) He doesn't believe in sorrys

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At the end of the week, this was what Sakura knew about Gaara:

1) He is a junior (no wonder none of her classmates knew who he was)

2) He keeps to himself

3) He is intelligent

The point was-

She's been a champion observer for two years already, and this was all she knew about him. It was almost impossible to try to pin down a general picture of the guy!

He was _unreadable_.

Or rather, he wanted to hide, and he was smart enough to.

She had always prided herself on noticing the little details only she knew, but with him, she still knew absolutely nothing.

It was _strange_.

Why would he close up to everyone around him? He had no friends, talked to no one, mysteriously disappeared during breaks-

Of course, it was very easy to make assumptions, and she had to remind herself daily not to believe in any of them with regard to the facts. Only observe and note the facts, she told herself.

The ambiguity of it all overwhelmed her initial frustration and anger.

In the end, she just had to conclude to herself she wasn't trying hard enough.

So maybe she couldn't understand him just by observing.

But there were other methods…

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**A/N: **Haha, Sakura is getting naughty. Well, u can see it now. PLOT! And it will continue to unfold...

I really hate to be immature but…

Please review! Your reviews are the ones that inspire me, to keep me going and also to give me an input on what you all think.

:b

In fact, I _dare_ you to review!

Thank you very much for reading!


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N**: Thank you to readers and reviewers **Gaaras1Girl**, **pillowwolfpup**, **miikodesu**, **SasoLOVE111**, and **FreedomIsPirateKey. **It was very much appreciated!

Sorry this was a bit delayed. I had one of those short traumatic moments where u think ur life is ending and u have to change ur attitude about it. lol, I'm glad that's over.

Answers to a couple comments from the reviews:

_-Sakura does have friends, but I haven't really put the spotlight on them yet. You hear a bit about them in this chapter. But no, she is not a loner._

_-About the eyes. I know I've been stressing Gaara's eyes a lot. It might become a bad habit, but I stress the eyes b/c I think that is how people acknowledge/connect with each other. When u meet someone, u look into their eyes. Your eyes are like the fundamental connection between two people. You cannot know someone if you like just stare at their nose the whole time. It's the eyes that signify each other's acknowledge of each other, and I also think, green eyes are just very special and luring._

Here's Chapter 4. Read on!

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Sweet Dreams

**Chapter 4**

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He knew.

Somehow he knew.

The more Sakura knew, the more she was intrigued, and the more she wanted to know.

She should've known.

Curiosity killed the cat.

All she'd done was skip all her breaks with her friends (whom she really, really owes an excuse) and prop underneath the bleachers of the football field, watching him.

It wasn't a bad place, really. From his seat, the provided angle obscured her lying underneath the musty, aluminum bench. She knows this because it took her half an hour after school to finally find the one hiding spot in which his spot would not be able to see. And she must say, regardless of the extreme awkwardness in the situation, the spot was pretty comfortable. The sun hit the bench on just the right places and cracks, and this one time, she almost took a nap.

It was oddly self-satisfying even though he almost never does anything except either one, listen to his I-Pod (from her spot, it looked like a black iPod Classic) or two, do homework. Most of the time, he just sat there unmoving, ear plugs plugged in ears, and eyes closed.

Somehow just watching him was enough. The calm misdemeanor and quietness of him was a strange aura of its own; just by watching him, Sakura felt an odd sense of peace settle around her, a feeling of content and relaxation. During class, as much as she could, she would sneak a long look at his face as he entered the class. She would see the cold paleness and bleak, narrowed eyes that glimmered with scorn as he immediately, like always, walked to the back and sat down. He emitted the feeling of such a cold –leave-me-alone- vibe that people steered clear of him.

Yet, here, in the football stadium- rows and rows of white benches all facing the green center, the edges of his face seemed to soften. When he closed his eyes, he seemed to submit all his soul and let go of himself. He looked vulnerable.

Well, maybe vulnerable wasn't the word.

It was just easier to imagine him feeling emotions- raw, human emotions.

The idea that now she had something worthwhile and meaningful to do during break –stare at Gaara for twenty minutes- made her feel slightly more…

Important?

She didn't know the word that described how she felt.

Every day at 10:30 AM, she would race out of her Algebra 2 Honors class and dump her backpack at the Spanish classroom, with a bag of apple slices in her hands. She came to school with all her books packed in her bag; her locker was dusty and empty of all, except for a crumpled sheet of notebook paper she had thrown in there during a moment of haste. It didn't matter anymore that her backpack now weighed a ton and she came home with sore arms and back.

She would eat her snack quickly as she ran, well more like power walk, through the crowds, ignore her friends' hellos and questions, stride across the buildings, slink down the long stairs and finally run quietly to the football field and slide into her little, cozy area. Her breath would be uneven by the time she got there, but it was worth it.

At 10:36 AM, the usual long, black pants came into her view. He had a steady gait, foot after foot- not in a hurry nor sluggishly slow. His shoes were quiet as he clambered down the steps then turned at the fifth row. His black pack was hung over his shoulder comfortably, and then he would sit down.

Next, he would open his backpack, stick in his pale arm, and emerge with his music player clasped in hand. He then inserts his ear plugs into his ears at a slow, leisure pace, and the soft clicking noise of the I-Pod would emerge as he scrolls down the list of his songs. He would pick one, and once he did, he settled in, closed his eyes, and was quiet.

Finding his "secret" destination in which he avoided assemblies and interaction with other students was actually fairly simple. All she did was lock her eyes on the redhead on one of the dense crowd migration during break. Because of her frail figure, she was able to slip through bodies and kept up with his stride. At first, it had been a little unsettling because the crowd eventually thinned. Whereas everyone was heading towards their lockers or such, he was heading south. South, where the football stadium and gym was located, somewhere one wouldn't go during break. She had to lighten her step and find a convenient tree or structure to hide behind in case he ever turns back. Strangely though, she never remembered him looking back, and once she saw where he was headed, she lurked back up the stairs and back to her locker.

It was too much of a risk.

But as days went by, she couldn't resist. Soon, she found herself sneaking down there to see what he did, but it was impossible to do because she was too far to ever notice anything and the angle was inaccurate. However, she did notice he sat in the same spot every single day. Thus, one day she stayed after school, crawling over benches and exploring every niche of the field and finally found a designation spot of her own. The perfect hideaway that gave access to a full monitor of Gaara.

And she was intrigued. She watched and memorized the movements of his; they were very distinct. Whenever he sat down, he would slide his backpack off his right shoulder and gracefully set it down next to him. His stride was made to get to the destination he wanted. There were no quickness, no skip, no slowness. It was almost like a machine, mechanic- walk walk walk, turn, sit. He sat in the fifth row, 3/4s in, the same spot, every day. His posture was straight- not shameful or trying to hide anything.

And his complexion. Dark musty red intermixed with strands of brown over pale face and those jewels of jade.

She too, owned green eyes, so she was puzzled at first why she devoted so much time fascinating over his eyes. But his eyes were different. There was a glaze over them, a look of blur that clouded his sight. It was as if he saw through everything. Nothing mattered to him. He easily looked through things as if they weren't even there. Back when he had made eye contact with her during the incident, it was a shock because his eyes had registered her. And not just register her, but also seemed to stare straight down to all her feelings and thoughts and vulnerability and weaknesses.

His eyes held power.

But more importantly, his eyes held secrets.

* * *

It was not enough for her to just examine him during breaks. Soon, she found herself looking for him during lunch, and incidentally, he came back down to the bleachers during lunch. Now, she had thirty minutes to observe him, so twenty plus thirty equals fifty minutes every day to observe this stranger she was already so immensely fascinated and captivated with.

A little part of her subconscious felt bad for her friends. Ino's puzzling gaze and Hinata's hurt look and Tenten's look of suspicion was intimidating enough for her to want to totally avoid them all together during school. She knew they were confused as to why all of a sudden, she was untraceable and she was never there during breaks or lunch.

But it was something they wouldn't understand.

Ino immediately would clap her hand over her mouth and her eyes would glow as she squeal, 'you like himmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!'

Hinata would give her a shy smile, a twinkle lit up in her eyes.

Tenten would be horrified, huffing and storming about, wondering what the hell made this guy worth more than their friendship, and then demand to drag him out of his quiet existence.

While she wouldn't mind if Ino and Hinata thought she liked him- well actually, she _would_ mind, but it was a veritable excuse that would cover up her strange obsession- it would be hell no if Tenten decided to investigate.

Ino and Hinata would completely agree. They would never allow their friend to "date" or be "seduced" by someone not worthy.

Ugh.

They simply wouldn't understand her fascination was nothing related to love. Her obsession was something entirely different, something she could not comprehend herself.

At the same time, she would never allow any of them find him. It was a strange type of possession that burned in her, but her insides curled with anger whenever she thought of them pouncing on him and invading his personal space.

There was an aura of loneliness and ambiguity that surrounded him that made him Gaara.

He wanted it, and she knew he would not appreciate it.

There was another selfish reason: once exposed, he wouldn't be her Gaara anymore.

* * *

She was good into two weeks of observation. She would find herself curled underneath the bench, her body perfectly at ease, her heart a slow, melodious beat within her chest.

She would stare up unblinkingly at his figure as he basked in the sun. At first, it was weird for her, but by now she just accepted it even though she didn't understand it. Staring at him for fifty minutes doing nothing was satisfying. It made her content.

She had already traced his face over and over for countless times.

Sometimes, she would close her eyes and drift off herself. Somehow, just being in this wide expanse of space –meters and meters of green grass stretching out below them- with his presence, just filled the space in her so well it hurt.

Until then, all of a sudden, he stopped showing up.

He still came to history class-

He still never showed up during assemblies and breaks-

He was still a student here; she asked a teacher, pretending it was a name that people were throwing around through gossip and faking it as mere curiosity-

But inside, her body was filled with dread panic.

The peace inside of her shattered as she contemplated where he had gone, why he had mysteriously vanished.

And then she realized,

He knows.

Somehow he knows.

_He knows I'm here.  
_

_

* * *

_

He must've switched hiding spots.

* * *

And so began the game of cat and mouse.

A part of her wondered,

If this is a game of cat and mouse,

Does this mean I am the cat?

Is Gaara then the mouse?

It didn't seem quite right to her.

* * *

After a week, she was nearly driven insane. She couldn't find him at all! She searched the entire school- the library, the classrooms (which turned out to be a very bad idea because some of the encounters she found were ones that made her blush to the root of her hairline), the bathrooms (well, she snuck in _very_ fast and realized that was a very unreasonable place because of the smell and the popularity of the area), the offices, the gym, the bleachers (in case he switched seats), the locker area… it was exhausting.

He was nowhere, and she had scoured every corner she could possibly think of!

She realized that he could of course, sneak locations and switch off every day, but from what she's observed, she deducted he wouldn't go to the energy of finding a new spot every day. There was still a possibility though, and it would be better off if she employed her friends in the investigation, but-

She didn't like the cost of that.

He was still her secret.

* * *

Finally, she stalked him.

It was the last thing she could think of, and at least it was getting somewhere. And now that she thinks about it, stalking him was probably not as bad as observing him, because an outsider would claim observing him was as bad as a naughty peeping Tom. So there was nothing to be ashamed of, even though it was somewhat degrading for Sakura to accept she had to resort to this.

She followed him out of history class, knowing very well that meant she was ditching science class and a detention would follow. But screw detention. She didn't care.

Strange, because she's never ditched class before.

This time, she had the decency to be afraid. He could easily turn around and pin her down because of the lack of trees around the area.

This area was where the art buildings were located, so clearly, he was heading towards a fine arts class. Funny, she couldn't imagine Gaara painting or making a pot. He didn't seem like the artsy type to her.

When he finally reached his destination, her eyes widened and she froze.

_Figures_.

* * *

It was lunch time.

Her cold, sweaty hand gripped the doorknob. Slowly, she turned the knob and pushed it open to meet the darkness of the classroom.

She released the knob gradually, easing the door shut silently behind her. The room seemed tense to her, but maybe it was just because she was still grappling with what she was about to do.

But she had to.

Her eyes scanned along the walls of the classroom until finally, they found the light switch. She slid across the floor, flicking the switch on as soft light flooded the room.

She let out a breath.

Her eyes settled onto the cubbyholes opposite from her and flickered through the name labels on the top until finally, they rested on one.

**Gaara**

He doesn't have last name? she thought distractingly as she headed towards the compartments.

(_So many secrets_)

She leaned down until her weight rested on her knees as her eye became level with the box. Inside, she could see a neat stack.

Her breath tightened inside her.

A stack of maybe twenty, thirty pictures.

It seemed to fit perfectly with him; it was something she totally should have expected coming from him.

He took Photo Class.

* * *

Her daddy was a photographer. Her mommy had told her, photographers were observers in disguise. They observe the universe, the nature of it all, and take a snapshot illuminating an angle of truth.

_Perception._

_

* * *

_

Trembling, her hand lifted up daintily, rising closer and closer up to the opening. She was ready to grab hold of the pictures-

A snarl erupted the silence of the room as an arm suddenly snaked its way around her neck.

She gasped, her mouth open in a silent scream as she was lifted from her kneel and stumbled backwards.

Her head was tipped forward, and she met the glint of a predator's eyes.

Jade met jade.

Her eyes snapped open as her energy drained from her. Suddenly, she felt weak and her legs gave way behind her. Her heart pounded fast and flightly, like a bird.

Her trembles grew violently as her eyes froze on his, trapped.

The warmth of his arm seared against her neck, but it was more because of the fact that it was clenched tight, and it was hard to breathe.

At one point, she remembered she couldn't, because she choked against his arm.

Her silent scream started to form into whimpers, whimpers of pain and fear as she wriggled against his clasp.

He silenced her as his head leaned down towards her neck, his eyes mockingly sharp.

"I will give you exactly one minute to explain," came the hoarse growl.

* * *

**A/N: **haha, a cliffie! ;) please **review **to find out what happens…!

P.S. For some reason, I feel as if my tone is not consistent throughout the story. I would like to know what you think!

P.S.S. For some reason, the little dashes - that i insert between different sections in chapter 1, 2, and 3 did not show up. do any of u know how to fix it?


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: thanks for reviewers **SasoLOVE111, Gaaras1Girl, F97-Master of Saikyo , K. Higurashi, kanjimaru67! **Sorry this was so late! I hope Only Human made it up for you, unless you're not a SasuxSaku fan. If that's the case, I hope this makes it up:

* * *

Chapter 5

Sweet Dreams

_General disclaimer applied_

_

* * *

_

She couldn't speak. Her mouth was open in the shape of an o, and words stuck to her throat. She swallowed once, twice, as if to clear her throat, but it was of no use.

The temperature around her rose, and it became excruciatingly hard to breathe as seconds passed. No matter how much her mind screamed at her, she remained stupefied, frozen in her fear.

Finally, the suppression of air got to her, and though it wasn't what he requested, her arms and legs started to respond by thrashing in an attempt to free herself.

Thus, it was of a sudden relief as she was suddenly released and thrown to the ground, albeit it did _hurt_. Gasping, she sucked in breaths of air, her heart rapidly pounding up and down in exhaustion. Her vision blurred into rings of black and white, and when her eyes slowly adjusted to his daunting figure standing over her, her head fell back onto the ground, and she shut her eyes.

It wasn't a dream, of course, and Sakura wasn't going to be stupid and pretend that pinching herself would excuse her from this predicament. Closing her eyes just made confronting him easier.

Though that wasn't possible at the moment for her body was frantically trying to calm down, her heart beat pounding faster than a normal, healthy rate.

Dimly, she started to fully recognize the magnitude of his action, and her eyes snapped open.

"YOU…," she gasped.

His face remained emotionless, but his eyes seared at her tone.

"You….," subconsciously, she felt herself scramble to her feet and tumble backwards. Angry was conquering her fear.

"You… you… could've killed me!" she pointed a shaking, accusatory finger at his face, aware that all the blood had left her face, and she felt faint.

She couldn't believe it when he disregarded that with a disdain look. "Obviously it didn't work."

Sakura found her eyes widening, her breathing starting to border along hyperventilation. "That's…. that's…. a school offense!" What the hell was she talking about? "No-no-no-no-no-no… it's…it's… a crime! You'll go to jail!" she stuttered.

An annoyed look passed over his face, and her eyes followed his movement down to his hand, where it clenched tighter around the pile of photos.

"So is stealing," came the retort.

"I…I," she spluttered. "I wasn't stealing!"

His left eyebrow raised. "Oh, really? Did you need paper, and couldn't find any?" his voice sneered.

"I…" her eyes stumbled through the rows of names along the cubbyholes, zooming past _Kenji, Shonei, Gaara, Shikamara_… her eyes swiveled back, _Gaara_. A sudden idea occurred to her, and her eyes switched back to _Shikamaru. _

"…Those are Shikamaru's pictures!" she suddenly spoke, breathless as her revived eyes met his.

"Those aren't yours, at all!" With a sudden vivacity, she scrambled to her feet and stalked to where he was.

"Now, given your violation of almost killing an innocent girl, would you dare to steal too?" she spoke sweetly, her palm extended out towards him.

His eyes narrowed suspiciously, and ignoring her hand, he walked to the cubbyholes and bent down to examine his box. He walked back to her languidly, replying coldly, "I'm afraid my box is empty, _innocent_ girl."

"Name's Sakura," she snapped. She then feigned surprise, pasting a blank look over her face. "Your box? Are you sure? Not Shikamaru's?"

As his face darkened with irritation, she hurriedly pressed on, "I must've took the pictures out the wrong box, I was in a rush, and you know, all those cubbies look the same, "she added a nervous laugh, suddenly aware that this game was teetering along the edge and had the same potential to expose her. "S-S-Sorry," she finally let out, surprisingly finding a layer of sincerity in her word.

His face took upon the usual façade he always wore, but his eyes still held something she didn't quite like. His hand holding the photos slid inside the pocket of his pants.

He glanced once again at Shikamaru's cubbyhole for a long time, and holding her breath, Sakura decided she should meet this "Shikamaru" guy and depending on what type of guy he was, somehow force an acquaintance with him, in one way or the other. Just in case.

Sakura refocused his eyes on the pale face as he started to walk towards the door.

"Aren't you going to say sorry?" slipped out of her mouth before she could help it. Inwardly, she berated herself for being so stupid. Lying was already pushing it, and this was just overdoing it.

He didn't respond right away until he got to the door, and his response wasn't anything she expected either.

"By the way, his last name is Nara."

The door shut behind him, and Sakura, frozen for the umpteenth time this day, flushed darkly.

* * *

"Do any of you, by any chance, know a Shikamaru Nara guy?"

"W-w-wait! Who?"

Sakura flinched from Ino's face that suddenly appeared in front of her, eyes widened with…with… is that…?

"You know him? Do you know if he's nice?"

"Why?" Ino pressed, an inch of suspicion suddenly appearing in her voice.

"Um, I-," Knowing Ino for many godforsaken years, Sakura turned to Ino, wary. "No, Ino, I'm not interested. I might want to put the spotlight on him for this month's issue of _Konoha Pen_," the lie came out, easy and smooth. Second lie in the day.

"He's a lazy piece of ass," Tenten piped helpfully, before narrowing her dark brown eyes. "Now, Sakura, your turn to answer: where have you been all these days? Weeks?"

Hinata, who was eating her strawberries in silence, suddenly looked up.

Now three hard pairs of eyes were on her. But Sakura had prepared herself for this moment. "I had to stay behind for extra help because my grades were slipping. I'm taking three APs, remember girls? I'm not going to avoid free help when I can't even help myself," she replied nonchalantly, crossing her fingers in her pocket.

Her friends caught up to her in a moment, stride matching stride.

"How come you didn't tell us, when we asked you before?" Tenten challenged.

"Well, you know me, I guess I was embarrassed, at first," Sakura gave a rueful grin to her friends whose looks had relaxed.

Fourth lie in the day. What was Sakura going to do with herself?

Wiping her self-satisfied grin off her face, she turned back to her friends. "Well, so, what do you know about him?"

* * *

She got lucky.

Shikamaru was a sophomore just like her, but he was a genius and took classes with the juniors and seniors, which explained why she never heard his name before. He was dating a senior girl, some blonde bitch named Temari (Ino), he was Konoha High's top debater for the last two years and won them many awards, and he was in the chess club (Hinata), and though he was incredibly smart, he was also incredibly lazy (Tenten).

From what she heard, she deducted she shouldn't need to worry too much. He was smart enough to not think twice about petty matters. Either that, or he would be too lazy to care about petty matters. It worked both ways.

But she didn't know Gaara. Who knows, after today's episode, she wouldn't be surprised if Gaara twisted her little story into something horrendous. Her mouth pulled into a frown. Get her expelled. Get her into jail even.

So she found herself knocking on the door of the room containing Chess Club.

And realized she forgot to encompass the given: geniuses actually _had_ lives, damnit, and didn't quote on quote have time for socializing.

On hindsight, it was stupid.

She should've just left it alone and discarded the matter. If he didn't listen to her, he wouldn't have listened to Gaara either.

But of course, her swollen pride had to protest, and she found herself sitting outside the room, arms crossed over her chest as she waited for his "important chess game" to end.

She scowled.

* * *

"Still here, punk?" a voice drawled beside her ear, and she awoke with a gasp.

Shikamaru had a pale, lean face with black hair that was pulled back from his face. Flat back eyes and a smirk met her.

Her eyes narrowed in retort, but before she could open her mouth, his smirk diminished into a friendly smile.

"Calm, Haruno. I must say, I'm impressed you decided to wait four hours for my team and I to finish," he started to walk away, before motioning for her to follow.

Still startled, she stumbled to her feet and ran to catch up with him. She noted he had long strides.

"How did you know my name?"

He replied easily. "Who wouldn't know the name of the girl with pink hair?"

For some reason, when he said it, she didn't have to fight the urge to hit him. When he said it, rather than spike her defense, he made it sound casual, a normal sentence just meant to be.

She calmed down, sneaking a couple inquisitive looks up at his thin figure. Her previous anger seemed to have evaporated.

"You play chess every Wednesday?"

He gave her a quick glance. "Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, from two to six."

"And how, exactly, do you play twelve hours of chess every week without getting bored?" Sakura inquired curiously.

"I see you're one who doesn't appreciate the art of chess."

"Well, I mean, it's a great game and all, but… it gets boring," Sakura answered, perturbed.

"It's the art of thinking," he tapped his head with his index finger. "When you've got to think, boredom doesn't usually tap into your will to figure it out. Anyways, was this the original conversation you had in mind?" he shot her another glance.

"Right. You're too busy for "socializing," Sakura commented, though without anger.

He shrugged. "Don't take it personally. It's just fact."

Sakura scrunched her nose. "Wow, your life must be so interesting."

He paused and studied her a bit, before cracking a small grin.

"More than yours, probably."

They started to walk again, slower now. "Are you kidding me? I almost freaking died this morning!"

"Really now?" he replied tonelessly, sounding almost bored.

"Yeah, and you're related to it," she retorted, examining his face for any sign of emotion.

He looked interested, "And exactly how?" but he still sounded bored.

His lack of response, rather than anger her, was actually pretty… interesting. It matched his person well. She marveled this silently for a second before realizing he had asked her a question.

"Yeah… um…," well this was the difficult part. Sakura didn't quite know how to tell him. "So, I, erm…"

She paused, the stupidity of it all suddenly occurring to her. Why did it even matter?

Her frown transformed into a smile then into a grin and before she knew it, she was giggling (her, giggling?) like a young school girl, and she had to stop and hold her arms to her waist.

She looked at Shikamaru's slightly confused face and burst out laughing again.

"So-So-Sorry, I do-don't know what came over me," she spoke between giggles, finally calming down though her insides still tickled with laughter.

He was studying her with an impassive face, and she tossed him a small grin. "No seriously. I'm not like that usually. Just…" she bit her lip. "Could we be friends?"

In response to his surprised look, she ambled, "Okay fine that's weird we don't have to it's fine anyways just if Gaara ever asks could you pretend we are?"

"Gaara?"

"Please?" What was she doing? Begging him to pretend to be her friend? She was pathetic.

"Uh…"

Sakura paused, realizing she should probably just tell him the whole story anyways. She didn't mind his company.

"Whatever. Sure."

Sakura's mouth quirked upwards but realized she was not entirely surprised.

"See you later, Haruno."

"Yeah, bye," she found herself replying.

When he was gone, she grinned. Sakura: one. Gaara: zero.

* * *

A/N: so yes, Shikamaru will become a main character. New twist :)

Review if you can!


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